Food Assistance Program To Return

SANFORD — More than 1,500 needy families in Seminole County are expected to benefit from free food after the two-year absence of the temporary food assistance program.

The program, which gets surplus federal food to distribute to the poor, was halted in September of 1989, but it's expected to begin again in November. After being passed in the late 1980s from the Red Cross to the Salvation Army, the Retired Senior Volunteer Program will oversee the latest effort.

Seminole was one of a few counties in Florida that did not offer the program.

Larilyn Swanson, director of RSVP, said her organization had picked volunteers with extensive business and bookkeeping experience.

The initial $14,000 start-up costs, which will pay for the renovation of an office at Zayre Plaza on South Orlando Avenue, are paid by the county. The organization will need federal reimbursements to operate.

''Using volunteers will be the key,'' Swanson said.

About 16 senior volunteers will be trained to screen applicants and bag groceries, which will range from beans and rice to butter and canned pork or beef.

Swanson also said other volunteers will be needed to unload the trucks. Also, she said, the group needs used shopping bags for packing the food.

Those interested in volunteering can call RSVP at 323-4440. Bags, either paper or plastic, can be donated at any senior center in Seminole County.

Irene Quintana, the county's social services officer, said the program is badly needed.

''It benefits a lot of people who are low income or on a fixed income,'' she said.

Most people who are eligible for food stamps, Aid to Families with Dependent Children, Medicaid, Supplemental Security Income or are residents of public housing qualify for the program. Those interested in finding out whether they qualify can call RSVP.

Quintana said she hopes the program has found a permanent home with the senior volunteers.

The South Seminole Christian Sharing Center in Longwood was planning to take over the program, but the obstacles and red tape in just setting it up proved too much. Its board voted in June to bow out.